Stellantis bets big on India market; to launch first EV next year
Carlos Tavares, the chief executive officer of Stellantis Group, expects the company’s revenue to grow at a faster pace in the Indian market, through measures like localisation.
The global automotive major, formed through the merger of French automaker PSA Group and Italian-American automaker Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, is planning to launch its first electric vehicle in India under the Citroen brand next year. It is also expecting the country’s electric vehicle market to go aggressively by 2030.
“We are quite confident regarding India. We are working towards localisation. Our first EV will come next year,” Tavares said. The plan is to launch EVs in the compact sub-four metre segment and sports utility vehicle segment in India. Tavares added that the company’s EVs are going to be engineered in India as part of the smart car platform programme of Citroen.
Stellantis at present sells around 19 electric vehicles across the world. This number will be raised to 32 by next year and 75 fully electric vehicles by the end of this decade. “Challenge to introducing an EV is two-fold. One is the need to charge with clean electricity and another one is affordability. There is a significant price gap between EVs and conventional technology. Basically an EV is 40 to 50 per cent more expensive than conventional technology,” he said, highlighting the roadblocks for EV expansion in markets like India. According to the roadmap, the company’s plan is to make 90 per cent of EVs through localisation. He added that the company may look for tie ups with local players if batteries are also available for sourcing in the domestic market.
The sales of electric vehicles for the group are likely to move towards 100 per cent in Europe, 50 per cent in the US and around 25-30 per cent in India by 2030. “I think that by 2025 EVs are going to be 5 per cent to 10 per cent in terms of the mix, and by the end of the decade, perhaps 25 per cent to 30 per cent,” Tavares said about the share of EVs in India sales. The company operates three manufacturing plants in India at Ranjangaon, Hosur and Thiruvallur. Last year, the company had announced an investment of around $250 million to grow its presence in India with the launch of four new jeep models.
In the Indian market, Western car makers struggle to make a mark because of losses. One of the major players that exited the Indian market recently includes Ford Motors. “Being profitable in India is possible if you think the Indian way – being smart and frugal,” he said, adding that it is making sure that cars are engineered in India with localised components.
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